Lima Bean Bake

Lima beans? You mean those slimy things your mom made you eat as a kid? Yes. If you get dry lima beans, you can create a versatile, hearty dish that uses up many vegetables. This recipe can be modified for vegetarians pretty easily.

WIC Items:
Green pepper
Onion
Tomato (Note: If you have a can of diced tomatoes on hand, feel free to use this instead.)
Few stalks of celery
Other veggies you might have on hand (I've been known to use carrots, jalapenos and anything else that's in the produce drawer.)
1 cup dry lima beans

Non-WIC Items:
1 pound ground pork sausage (I get mine from my local CSA, Millsap Farms. While naturally, responsibly-raised meat does cost more, when you're saving on groceries with WIC anyway, you might find that it's worth spending a bit more on your meat.)
3 tablespoons water
2 teaspoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon minced fresh oregano
1/2 teaspoon ground mustard
1 dash salt and pepper

Soak lima beans overnight. In fresh water, bring lima beans to boil, then simmer covered for about an hour, or until soft. Drain. Meanwhile, cook pork sausage with the vegetables you choose--except for the tomatoes--until the sausage is no longer pink. Add the remaining ingredients, mix and simmer over medium heat for five minutes.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Transfer the mixture to an ungreased baking pan and cook for 45-50 minutes. Enjoy! This recipe is versatile. You can try it with different spices, beans or even a different meat. Ground beef or turkey would be great, too.

This recipe was adapted from the following: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Hearty-Lima-Bean-Bake/Detail.aspx